The grape juice industry of the country is largely confined to New York and to the Chautauqua grape belt in the western part of the State. About one-fifth of the grape crop of this region was turned into grape juice in 1907. The output of the Chautauqua region is as follows: 1904, 400,000 gallons; 1905, 600,000 gallons; 1906, 1,000,000 gallons; 1907, 1,500,000 gallons. The Concord is used almost entirely in the manufacture of grape juice though a few other dark-colored grapes make a very good product. There is but little demand for a light-colored grape juice but some is made. Since the European grape does not make a good unfermented juice there is no fear among growers of native grapes of competition from California or Europe. The rapid growth which this industry has made is most encouraging to grape-growers for it promises to furnish a permanent and profitable demand for good grapes. Raisins[91] are not made from American grapes.[92] So far no varieties of the native species have been developed with sufficient sugar and solid contents to make a raisin acceptable to the markets. Even were there varieties from which raisins could be made, it is very doubtful if the climate of eastern America during picking and curing time is such that raisins could be made in competition with the product of California, now the greatest of the world's raisin producing regions, where the climate is almost perfectly adapted to the industry. CHAPTER III THE VITICULTURE OF NEW YORK The history of the viticulture of eastern United States shows that the regions in which grapes have been most largely grown in the past have come into prominence, had their day, and then suffered a decline. The reasons for the more or less temporary character of grape regions are becoming more and more apparent as our knowledge of grape-growing increases. The grape, more than most other domesticated plants, is profoundly influenced by climate, soil, cultural treatment, and insect and fungus pests. In any region in which the grape succeeds at all well, conditions are more favorable at the start of the industry than later; this is especially true as regards soils, and the insect and fungus pests. In a discussion of any phase of grape culture, in a broad sense, the conditions under which the fruit is grown must receive careful consideration. We therefore include in this chapter a discussion of the characters which most strongly influence grapes in vine, fruit and general adaptability; also a brief discussion of the regions in which native grapes have been successfully grown in America; and, more particularly, an account of the viticulture and the grape regions of New York.